130 Colmore Row[1] is a Grade II listed building in the city centre of Birmingham, England. The building was built in 1903 as the main office for Alliance Assurance by architecture firm Goddard & Co. of Leicester. The building served as an office and banking hall for Alliance Assurance until the 1990s when it was bought by Birmingham City Council and became a tourist information office and later a careers centre. In 2013 the building was sold to a Chinese Investment Consortium who have planned to turn the vacant building into a restaurant named 'Nosh and Quaff'

The restaurant Nosh and Quaff opened in July 2015 after a £1 million internal fit out by Keane Design Associates. The restaurant is run by Aktar Islam's Lasan Group and specialises in lobster and beer.[2]

1.
Baroque architecture
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It was characterized by new explorations of form, light and shadow, and dramatic intensity. Baroque architecture and its embellishments were on the one hand more accessible to the emotions and on the other hand, the new style manifested itself in particular in the context of the new religious orders, like the Theatines and the Jesuits who aimed to improve popular piety. The architecture of the High Roman Baroque can be assigned to the reigns of Urban VIII, Innocent X and Alexander VII. Dissemination of Baroque architecture to the south of Italy resulted in variations such as Sicilian Baroque architecture or that of Naples. To the north, the Theatine architect Camillo-Guarino Guarini, Bernardo Vittone and Sicilian born Filippo Juvarra contributed Baroque buildings to the city of Turin and the Piedmont region. A synthesis of Bernini, Borromini and Cortona’s architecture can be seen in the late Baroque architecture of northern Europe which paved the way for the more decorative Rococo style. During the 17th century, Baroque architecture spread through Europe and Latin America, michelangelos late Roman buildings, particularly St. Peters Basilica, may be considered precursors to Baroque architecture. Colonialism required the development of centralized and powerful governments with Spain and France, the initial mismanagement of colonial wealth by the Spaniards bankrupted them in the 16th century, recovering only slowly in the following century. While this was good for the industries and the arts, the new wealth created an inflation. Rome was known just as much for its new sumptuous churches as for its vagabonds, one of the first Roman structures to break with the Mannerist conventions exemplified in the Gesù, was the church of Santa Susanna, designed by Carlo Maderno. The dynamic rhythm of columns and pilasters, central massing, there is an incipient playfulness with the rules of classic design, but it still maintains rigor. These concerns are more evident in his reworking of Santa Maria della Pace. Probably the most well known example of such an approach is Saint Peters Square, the piazza, designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, is formed principally by two colonnades of free standing columns centred on an Egyptian obelisk. Berninis own favourite design was his church of SantAndrea al Quirinale decorated with polychome marbles. His secular architecture included the Palazzo Barberini based on plans by Maderno, Berninis rival, the architect Francesco Borromini, produced designs that deviated dramatically from the regular compositions of the ancient world and Renaissance. His building plans were based on geometric figures, his architectural forms were unusual and inventive. Borrominis architectural spaces seem to expand and contract when needed, showing some affinity with the style of Michelangelo. A later work, the church of SantIvo alla Sapienza, displays the same playful inventiveness and antipathy to the flat surface, following the death of Bernini in 1680, Carlo Fontana emerged as the most influential architect working in Rome

2.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation

3.
Portland stone
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Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds and it has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major public buildings in London such as St Pauls Cathedral and Buckingham Palace. It is also exported to many countries—Portland stone is used in the United Nations headquarters building in New York City, Portland stone formed in a marine environment, on the floor of a shallow, warm, sub-tropical sea probably near land. When seawater is warmed by the sun, its capacity to hold dissolved gas is reduced, calcium and bicarbonate ions within the water are then able to combine, to form calcium carbonate as a precipitate. The process of lime scale build up in a kettle in hard water areas is similar, calcium carbonate is the principal constituent of most limestones. Billions of minute crystals of precipitated calcium carbonate accumulated forming lime mud which covered the sea floor, small particles of sand or organic detritus, such as shell fragments, formed a nucleus, which became coated with layers of calcite as they were rolled around in the muddy micrite. The calcite gradually accumulated around the fragments of shell in concentric layers and this process is similar to the way in which a snowball grows in size as it is rolled around in the snow. Over time, countless billions of these balls, known as ooids or ooliths, became partially cemented together by more calcite and this is one of the reasons why Portland stone is so favoured as a monumental and architectural stone. Dr Geoff Townson conducted three years research on the Portlandian, being the first to describe the patch-reef facies. Stone has been quarried on Portland since Roman times and was being shipped to London in the 14th century, Extraction as an industry began in the early 17th century, with shipments to London for Inigo Jones Banqueting House. Wrens choice of Portland for the new St Pauls Cathedral was a great boost for the quarries, the island was connected by railway to the rest of the country from 1865. Albion Stone PLC has been quarrying and mining Portland stone since 1984, Portland Stone Firms Ltd have been quarrying Portland stone since 1994. Jordans is part of the Inmosthay Quarry in the centre of the Island, the quarry has been worked since the late 19th century. Albion Stone leases the section from The Crown Estate and purchased the northern part of the site in 2006. The majority of the southern reserves lie under the grounds of the cricket club. To avoid disturbing the site at surface level, the company has applied and received permission to extract the stone using mining rather than quarrying techniques, the reserves to the north will be quarried using the diamond bladed cutting machines, hydro bags and wire saws to shape the blocks. Albion Stone PLC now extract all their stone through mining which dramatically reduces the impact on the environment, jordans Mine is currently the biggest mine on Portland. Bowers Quarry has been operational since the late 18th century and it has been leased from The Crown Estate since 1979 and in 2002 it became the site of the first Portland stone mine by Albion Stone PLC

4.
Granite
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Granite is a common type of felsic intrusive igneous rock that is granular and phaneritic in texture. Granites can be white, pink, or gray in color. The word granite comes from the Latin granum, a grain, in reference to the structure of such a holocrystalline rock. By definition, granite is a rock with at least 20% quartz. The term granitic means granite-like and is applied to granite and a group of igneous rocks with similar textures and slight variations in composition. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a texture is known as a granite porphyry. Granitoid is a general, descriptive field term for lighter-colored, coarse-grained igneous rocks, petrographic examination is required for identification of specific types of granitoids. The extrusive igneous rock equivalent of granite is rhyolite, Granite is nearly always massive, hard and tough, and therefore it has gained widespread use throughout human history, and more recently as a construction stone. The average density of granite is between 2.65 and 2.75 g/cm3, its compressive strength usually lies above 200 MPa, and its viscosity near STP is 3–6 •1019 Pa·s. The melting temperature of dry granite at ambient pressure is 1215–1260 °C, it is reduced in the presence of water. Granite has poor primary permeability, but strong secondary permeability, true granite according to modern petrologic convention contains both plagioclase and alkali feldspars. When a granitoid is devoid or nearly devoid of plagioclase, the rock is referred to as alkali feldspar granite, when a granitoid contains less than 10% orthoclase, it is called tonalite, pyroxene and amphibole are common in tonalite. A granite containing both muscovite and biotite micas is called a binary or two-mica granite, two-mica granites are typically high in potassium and low in plagioclase, and are usually S-type granites or A-type granites. A worldwide average of the composition of granite, by weight percent, based on 2485 analyses. Much of it was intruded during the Precambrian age, it is the most abundant basement rock that underlies the relatively thin veneer of the continents. Outcrops of granite tend to form tors and rounded massifs, granites sometimes occur in circular depressions surrounded by a range of hills, formed by the metamorphic aureole or hornfels. Granite often occurs as small, less than 100 km² stock masses

5.
Listed building
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A listed building or listed structure, in the United Kingdom, is one that has been placed on the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. The statutory bodies maintaining the list are Historic England in England, Cadw in Wales, Historic Scotland in Scotland, however, the preferred term in Ireland is protected structure. In England and Wales, an amenity society must be notified of any work to a listed building which involves any element of demolition. Owners of listed buildings are, in circumstances, compelled to repair and maintain them. When alterations are permitted, or when listed buildings are repaired or maintained, slightly different systems operate in each area of the United Kingdom, though the basic principles of the listing remain the same. It was the damage to caused by German bombing during World War II that prompted the first listing of buildings that were deemed to be of particular architectural merit. The listings were used as a means of determining whether a building should be rebuilt if it was damaged by bombing. Listing was first introduced into Northern Ireland under the Planning Order 1972, the listing process has since developed slightly differently in each part of the UK. In the UK, the process of protecting the historic environment is called ‘designation’. A heritage asset is a part of the environment that is valued because of its historic. Only some of these are judged to be important enough to have legal protection through designation. However, buildings that are not formally listed but still judged as being of heritage interest are still regarded as being a consideration in the planning process. Almost anything can be listed – it does not have to be a building, Buildings and structures of special historic interest come in a wide variety of forms and types, ranging from telephone boxes and road signs, to castles. Historic England has created twenty broad categories of structures, and published selection guides for each one to aid with assessing buildings and these include historical overviews and describe the special considerations for listing each category. Both Historic Scotland and Cadw produce guidance for owners, in England, to have a building considered for listing or delisting, the process is to apply to the secretary of state, this can be done by submitting an application form online to Historic England. The applicant does not need to be the owner of the building to apply for it to be listed, full information including application form guidance notes are on the Historic England website. Historic England assesses buildings put forward for listing or delisting and provides advice to the Secretary of State on the architectural, the Secretary of State, who may seek additional advice from others, then decides whether or not to list or delist the building. In England and Wales the authority for listing is granted to the Secretary of State by the Planning Act 1990, Listed buildings in danger of decay are listed on the Historic England Heritage at Risk Register

6.
Surf and turf
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Surf and turf or surf n turf is a main course which combines seafood and red meat. The seafood used may be lobster, prawns, or shrimp, when served with lobster, the lobster tail or a whole lobster may be served with the dish. The meat is typically beef steak, although others may be used, one standard combination is lobster tail and filet mignon. Surf and turf is eaten in steakhouses in the U. S, canada and Australia, and may also be available in some British/Irish-style pubs in those countries. It is unclear where the term originated, the earliest known citation is from 1961, in the Los Angeles Times. Surf and turf was often considered to symbolize the middle-class Continental cuisine of the 1960s and 1970s, with lobster, the name has been reappropriated ironically by more recent chefs such as Thomas Keller. List of seafood dishes List of steak dishes Fish and chips

7.
Birmingham
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Birmingham is a major city and metropolitan borough of West Midlands, England lying on the River Rea, a small river that runs through Birmingham. It is the largest and most populous British city outside London, the city is in the West Midlands Built-up Area, the third most populous urban area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2,440,986 at the 2011 census. Birminghams metropolitan area is the second most populous in the UK with a population of 3.8 million and this also makes Birmingham the 8th most populous metropolitan area in Europe. By 1791 it was being hailed as the first manufacturing town in the world, perhaps the most important invention in British history, the industrial steam engine, was invented in Birmingham. From the summer of 1940 to the spring of 1943, Birmingham was bombed heavily by the German Luftwaffe in what is known as the Birmingham Blitz. The damage done to the infrastructure, in addition to a deliberate policy of demolition and new building by planners, led to extensive demolition. Today Birminghams economy is dominated by the service sector and its metropolitan economy is the second largest in the United Kingdom with a GDP of $121. 1bn, and its six universities make it the largest centre of higher education in the country outside London. Birmingham is the fourth-most visited city in the UK by foreign visitors, Birminghams sporting heritage can be felt worldwide, with the concept of the Football League and lawn tennis both originating from the city. Its most successful football club Aston Villa has won seven league titles, people from Birmingham are called Brummies, a term derived from the citys nickname of Brum. This originates from the citys name, Brummagem, which may in turn have been derived from one of the citys earlier names. There is a distinctive Brummie accent and dialect, Birminghams early history is that of a remote and marginal area. The main centres of population, power and wealth in the pre-industrial English Midlands lay in the fertile and accessible river valleys of the Trent, the Severn and the Avon. The area of modern Birmingham lay in between, on the upland Birmingham Plateau and within the wooded and sparsely populated Forest of Arden. Birmingham as a settlement dates from the Anglo-Saxon era, within a century of the charter Birmingham had grown into a prosperous urban centre of merchants and craftsmen. By 1327 it was the third-largest town in Warwickshire, a position it would retain for the next 200 years, by 1700 Birminghams population had increased fifteenfold and the town was the fifth-largest in England and Wales. The importance of the manufacture of goods to Birminghams economy was recognised as early as 1538. Equally significant was the emerging role as a centre for the iron merchants who organised finance, supplied raw materials. The 18th century saw this tradition of free-thinking and collaboration blossom into the phenomenon now known as the Midlands Enlightenment

8.
England
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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years

9.
Leicester
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Leicester is a city and unitary authority area in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest, in the 2011 census the population of the City of Leicester unitary authority was 329,839 making it the most populous municipality in the East Midlands region. The associated urban area is also the 11th most populous in England, the name of Leicester is recorded in the 9th-century History of the Britons as Cair Lerion, and in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as Ligora-ceastre. In the Domesday Book of 1086, it is recorded as Ledecestre, the second element of the name comes from the Latin castrum which is reflected in both Welsh cair and Anglo-Saxon ceastre. Based on the Welsh name, Geoffrey of Monmouth proposes a king Leir of Britain as a founder in his Historia Regum Britanniae. Leicester is one of the oldest cities in England, with a going back at least two millennia. The native Iron Age settlement encountered by the Romans at the seems to have developed in the 2nd or 1st centuries BC. This area of the Soar was split into two channels, a stream to the east and a narrower channel on the west. The settlement seems to have controlled a ford across the larger channel, the later Roman name was a latinate form of the Brittonic word for ramparts, suggesting the site was an oppidum. The plural form of the name suggests it was composed of several villages. The Celtic tribe holding the area was recorded as the Coritanians. The Corieltauvians are believed to have ruled over roughly the area of the East Midlands and it is believed that the Romans arrived in the Leicester area around AD47, during their conquest of southern Britain. The Corieltauvian settlement lay near a bridge on the Fosse Way, in the 2nd century, it received a forum and bathhouse. In 2013, the discovery of a Roman cemetery found just outside the old city walls, the remains of the baths of Roman Leicester can be seen at the Jewry Wall, recovered artifacts are displayed at the adjacent museum. Knowledge of the following the Roman withdrawal from Britain is limited. Certainly there is continuation of occupation of the town, though on a much reduced scale in the 5th and 6th centuries. Its memory was preserved as the Cair Lerion of the History of the Britons, following the Saxon invasion of Britain, Leicester was occupied by the Middle Angles and subsequently administered by the kingdom of Mercia. It was elevated to a bishopric in either 679 or 680, this see survived until the 9th century and their settlement became one of the Five Burghs of the Danelaw, although this position was short-lived

10.
Birmingham City Council
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Birmingham City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. The council headquarters are based at the Council House in the city centre, the council is responsible for running nearly all local services, with the exception of those run by joint boards. The provision of services has in recent years been devolved to several council constituencies. Sixteen Aldermen and 48 Councillors were elected and the Borough was divided into 13 wards, William Scholefield became the first Mayor and William Redfern was appointed as Town Clerk. It was not until 14 January 1889 that another Charter conferred the rank of City on Birmingham, on 9 November 1891, the districts of Balsall Heath, Harborne, Saltley and Little Bromwich were absorbed into the City. The dignity of a Lord Mayor was conferred in 1896 and Sir James Smith Kt was appointed as the Citys first Lord Mayor on 3 June 1896. Such was the expansion involved that the Council Chamber, originally designed to accommodate 80 members, had to be modified to seat the representatives of the new wards, further additions occurred on 1 April 1928 and 1 April 1931. By 1972, there were 39 Wards each represented by an Alderman and 3 Councillors, on 1 July 1986, the title was changed to Birmingham City Council. Part of Bromsgrove District known as Frankley and Kitwell Estates were added to the City on 1 April 1995, a review of the Ward boundaries on 10 June 2004 resulted in an increase from 39 Wards to 40 Wards. The first woman elected to the council, on 1 November 1911, was Ellen Pinsent and she represented the Edgbaston Ward as a Liberal Unionist. She had earlier been co-opted as a member of the councils Education Committee and she stood down from the council in October 1913 upon appointment as Commissioner for the Board of Control for Lunacy and Mental Deficiency. Pinsents time on the council overlapped with that of Margaret Frances Pugh, birminghams third woman councillor, Clara Martineau, was elected on 14 October 1913 in the Edgbaston ward, and served until 1932, when she died, aged 57. Her father was former Mayor Sir Thomas Martineau, Lord Mayor Ernest Martineau was her brother, mary E. Cottrell became the first female Labour councillor in February 1917, when she was elected unopposed to the Selly Oak ward. The first female Lord Mayor, Marjorie Brown, held the post from 1973 to 1974, Theresa Stewart became the first female leader in October 1993, until 1999, and Lin Homer the first chief executive, was in post from 2002 until 2005. The council was run by a Labour administration between 1984 and 2004, with Sir Dick Knowles as Council Leader from 1984 to 1993, followed in turn by Theresa Stewart, and Sir Albert Bore. They lost overall control in 2003 but continued to run the council as a minority administration for the following year, at the election of 10 June 2004, the 121 seats were divided between the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties. The Conservative and Liberal Democrat groups then formed a governing coalition, in 2005, Richard Mawrey QC ruled invalid Birmingham City Council elections in two wards, Aston and Bordesley Green, held the year before, and required re-votes. He blamed most of the fraud on absentee ballot manipulation

11.
Sutton Coldfield transmitting station
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The Sutton Coldfield transmitting station is a broadcasting and telecommunications facility located in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England. It has broadcast terrestrial television signals every day since 1949 and is thus the oldest working television transmitting station in the world, in terms of population covered, it is the second most important transmitter in the UK, after Crystal Palace in London. A new mast was built around 1983 to replace the original structure, a 240. 2m temporary mast was erected alongside the original mast in the spring of 2009 so that work could proceed in raising the height of the original mast by 31m. After four years in service and almost a year after the completion of digital switch over, all analogue TV transmissions ceased on 21 September 2011, as part of the digital switchover. This made it one of the oldest transmitters in the country to formally end analogue broadcasts. With a mast height of 270.5 metres, it is one of the most powerful transmitters in England, the coverage extends as far south as Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire and as far north as Stoke-on-Trent. However, there are many relay transmitters around the Midlands that extend coverage even further, thus mux 6 was transmitted slightly out of band on UHF Channel 55, though this would still be receivable on most B group aerials as this graph makes clear. In July 2007 it was confirmed by Ofcom that Sutton Coldfield would return to an undisputed B group transmitter post-Digital Switchover, a process that was completed on 21 September 2011. An MF transmitter for Radio Birmingham used to be installed at this site and it was eventually replaced with a transmitter at the nearby Langley Mill MF site owned by Arqiva. This transmitter is used for the BBC Asian Network. The station is now owned by Arqiva, analogue television signals are no longer broadcast from Sutton Coldfield as of 21 September 2011. The transmitter is served by a set of 35 local relays and these are, Digital switchover took place at Sutton Coldfield in September 2011. In preparation for this, major engineering works took place at the station, the mast height was increased from 245.0 metres to 270.5 metres and the UHF television antennas were replaced. This was accomplished through the use of a temporary 240.2 metres mast constructed to broadcast all the services so that the main mast could be worked on cold. HD broadcasts were moved from the Lichfield transmitter to Sutton Coldfield on the BBC B multiplex, the Lichfield transmitter ceased the broadcast of all television services, with all six multiplexes being broadcast from Sutton Coldfield. Pawley, Edward, BBC Engineering 1922 -1972, London, BBC. pp 355, ISBN 0-563-12127-0 Cooper, Ray, Tales from a Cold Field. com

12.
BT Tower (Birmingham)
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The BT Tower is a famous landmark and telecommunications tower in Birmingham, England, and is also the tallest structure in the city. Its Post Office code was YBMR, construction of the tower commenced in July 1963 and was completed in September 1965. The tower became operational in December 1966 and was opened by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham. It was designed by the Ministry of Public Building and Works with M. H and it has 26 storeys, housing technical areas and offices, and five levels of circular aerial galleries at the top. The original intention was to build a tower similar to the London one. At one time the Post Office wanted to increase the height from 500 feet and this was refused in order to avoid non-standard procedures for aircraft approaching Birmingham Airport from the north-west. The square design, as built, was proposed for aesthetic reasons by the Chief Architect of the Ministry of Public Building, the tower was designed to be stable in high winds. Channels at each corner funnel the wind to counteract the force of the wind swaying the structure, a stable platform is necessary so that the microwave dishes mounted on the side of the structure keep line of sight with the remote transmitter they are communicating with. There were two steel rails on one wall on which a trolley was designed to run to carry the dishes up to the aerial galleries. The original horn dishes were too heavy for the roof mounted crane to lift and had to be stripped down, the ability to lift dishes was dependent on the weather and to complicate matters, the steel rails only went to the bottom of the first aerial gallery. To get the higher a steel cable system was used that was mounted on poles. When the trolley reached the aerial gallery it had to be disconnected from the rails, in August 2003, the tower was painted an ultramarine blue to cover the existing light brown which had started to discolour. The balconies were painted to stand out from the tower in a shade of blue. On 18 March 2004, Jasper Carrott switched on the night time illuminations of the tower in response to Birmingham City Councils policy of encouraging the illumination of local landmarks, the tower is home to a pair of peregrines, with a webcam installed in 2010. On 5 February 2012 the last of the large analogue aerial dishes was removed following a migration to digital transmission. There are 24 equipment height floors, a Band Branching area - the square section seen from outside which is double the normal floor height followed by 5 aerial galleries. Floor numbering used YBMR/A followed by the floor number +1. The aerial galleries were labelled YBMR/B1-5, list of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Skyscrapernews. coms entry BT Tower Peregrine webcam Birminghams Hidden Spaces, BT Tower

13.
10 Holloway Circus
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10 Holloway Circus is a 427-foot tall mixed-use skyscraper in Birmingham city centre, England. It is named after the developers, Beetham Organisation, and was designed by Ian Simpson, the entire development covers an area of 7,000 square feet. It is the tallest occupied building in Birmingham and the 23rd tallest building in the United Kingdom and it has 39 floors, and is the second tallest structure in the city after the 499 ft British Telecom Tower. The front façade of the building is floor-to-ceiling glass decorated in tiger stripes which are used to enhance the vertical impact, as the apartments were being furbished, an aqua coloured camouflage was also added to these windows with some of the tiger stripes being removed. Coloured lights can be seen underneath the overhang at night, the lower 19-floors are a Radisson Blu hotel, which opened to guests on 16 January 2006 whilst the upper floors were still being furnished. The upper 20 floors contain 158 apartments, there are eight circular concrete columns as well as the core on each floor. The post-tensioned flat plates of the floors are concrete and measure 9 in in thickness. 10 Holloway Circus received 12 points in the 2006 Emporis Skyscraper Awards placing it in position in the top ten. The site chosen was the AEU Building, designed by The John Madin Design Group and completed in 1957, the spires were also removed and replaced by two cones placed on the rear of the tower on top of the stairwells. The overhang at the front was added, the proposed office space was also removed and the planning application was withdrawn. The new design was submitted, however, was withdrawn by the Beetham Corporation after talks over the purchase of the adjacent multi-storey car park with National Car Parks broke down without a deal. This was a surprise to the developers as they had expected to be able to purchase the land and had even included their plans for the site in the planning application. Amendments to the application were made and it was resubmitted in October 2000. A model of the tower was tested in a tunnel with models of surrounding buildings also being included. The ground of the model was accurate to that of the Birmingham landscape. The model passed with few problems and construction of the tower began, construction began in March 2003 with the erection of hoardings around the site allowing clearance work to commence and the construction of a tower crane. The concrete core began to rise and reached a considerable height before the construction of the concrete floor panels began. The transportation of materials to the levels were done using a lift attached to the middle of the curved frontage

14.
Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower
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The Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower, or simply Old Joe, is a clock tower and campanile located in Chancellors court at the University of Birmingham, in the suburb of Edgbaston. It is the tallest free-standing clock tower in the world, although its height is the subject of some confusion. The university lists it as both 110 metres and 99 metres tall, whereas other sources state that it is 100 metres tall, the nicknames Old Joe, Big Joe, or simply The Clock Tower are used by the student population and local residents. A prominent landmark in Birmingham, the grade II listed tower can be seen for miles around the campus, the tower is modelled on the Torre del Mangia in Siena. The original tower designs were amended due to Chamberlains great admiration for the Italian citys campanile, on 1 October 1905, the Birmingham Post reported that Chamberlain had announced to the University Council an anonymous gift of £50,000. In 1940, Sir Mark Oliphant used the tower for radar experiments, the tower remained the tallest structure in Birmingham until 1969, when construction on the 152 m tall BT Tower was completed in the Jewellery Quarter area of the city. However, Old Joe is still one of the fifty tallest buildings in the UK, the asteroid 10515 Old Joe, discovered in 1989, is named in the clock towers honour. There is a superstition that if students walk through the archway when it chimes. The base is solid concrete,50 ft square by 10 ft thick, the clock hands are made out of sheet copper. There are ten floors served by a lift in the SW corner. The tower was built from the inside, without scaffolding, up to the level of the balcony and it is built of Red Accrington brick with Darley Dale dressings and tapers from 29 ft square to 23 ft below the balcony. Owing to its having been built from the inside it was not pointed and had to be pointed in 1914 and was subsequently repointed in 1957 and its weight, solid brick corners linked by four courses of brick resists the overturning wind forces. The original design for Old Joe is thought to have been based upon St Marks Campanile in Venice, the final design is thought to have been inspired by Torre del Mangia which is of similar design but for the clock being placed towards the bottom of the tower. It is also said to have been inspiration for the Eye of Sauron in J. R. R Tolkiens Lord of the Rings due to the clock face. However, The Two Towers themselves are widely accepted as having been inspired by Edgbaston Waterworks, general Article from the Birmingham Magazine, including some history of the Clock Tower A 360° view of the Clock Tower

15.
Alpha Tower
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Alpha Tower is Grade II listed office skyscraper in Birmingham, England. ATV closed in 1982, after which the building became offices, Birmingham City Council took a large tenancy of the building until they vacated in 2010. It is the third tallest building in Birmingham and the tallest office building in Birmingham and it is a Grade A locally listed building. It was nominated for listed building status by the Twentieth Century Society in 2002, however, English Heritage added Alpha Tower to The National Heritage List for England on 31 July 2014. According to English Heritage, The building is one of the most aesthetically successful office buildings in Birmingham with a shaped outline, arena Central Developments sold the building to Catalysts European Property Fund in 2008 for £42.5 million. Birmingham City Council left tenancy in 2010 leaving the building 77% void, nationwide Building Society put the building into receivership in 2012 and put it on the market for £10.25 million in 2013. The building was bought for £14 million in February 2014 by Anglo Scandinavian Estates Group who are set to invest £9 million in a refurbishment of the building, the tower featured in the Cliff Richard film Take Me High for both exterior and interior shots. BirminghamUK. com Skyscrapernews. coms entry SkyscraperPage. coms entry Emporis. coms Entry

16.
Orion Building
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The Orion Building is a 90-metre tall high rise residential building on Navigation Street, Birmingham 5, England. Construction of the began in 2004 with demolition of the previous building on the site. As part of the development, the original façades of some of the buildings have been retained and incorporated into the lowrise sections of the complex. The complex consists of a 28 storey tower with five basement floors and it includes the citys first penthouse which was sold for £1.65 million. The fourth and final phase of the building, being marketed as Sirius, is nearing completion, the first planning application for the Orion Building was submitted on 3 December 2001 to Birmingham City Council. It was approved on 25 April 2002, soon after gaining planning permission, the scheme encountered problems. The original contractor, Carillion, fell out with Crosby Homes, Carillion quit their involvement on the scheme and Taylor Woodrow took over with construction recommencing soon after. Before construction of phases 1 and 2 commenced, all of the 150 apartments had been sold, the next planning application was submitted on 10 October 2002 for the second phase of the scheme. It was approved on July 8,2003, another planning application was submitted for the reuse of 93-97 John Bright Street, a listed building, as apartments and retail. It was submitted on 25 June 2004 and was approved on 2 October 2005, on 5 October 2004 Crosby Homes submitted a planning application to add another four floors to the tower and another storey to the block adjacent to it. Alterations were also made to the layouts of the apartments between floors 10 and 19 to provide a further 29 flats, the planning application was approved on 16 December 2004. The building was constructed in three phases with Phase 1 being the corner on Navigation Street and John Bright Street and the John Bright Street frontage. Phase 2 is a low rise element to the complex that fronts on to Navigation Street whilst Phase 3 is the tower overlooking Suffolk Street Queensway. The 200 apartments within the complex have been designed by John Rocha, the fashion designer, on the ground floor, there are four retail units, one of which is occupied by Sainsburys Local. The tower is illuminated at night by strips of LEDs, the top part of the tower is completely glass. Below this, the tower consists of strips of glass set within pre-cast concrete panels, the pre-cast concrete panels were painted in varying tones of beige after the construction. The reason for this was unknown, however in December 2006 these patches were painted over in a single colour, the final phase of the Orion scheme, is currently under construction. It is being marketed separate to the Orion Building and is named Sirius, as of August 2008, the scaffolding and sheeting covering the façade of the structure are being removed

17.
The Sentinels
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The Sentinels are two 90 metre tall residential tower blocks on Holloway Head in Birmingham, England. They are the tallest purely residential tower blocks in the city and they are surpassed by the newer Radisson Blu directly across Holloway Circus Queensway with 40 floors but this incorporates a hotel as residences. The councillors decided that Birmingham needed a development similar to this and in 1965, after discussions over height, it was decided that the tower blocks should be 32 stories tall, one story taller than the Red Road tower blocks in Glasgow, Scotland. It was decided to construct out of concrete, which was common among tower blocks in the city during that time. They were designed by Bryants Ltd. and both towers were identical though angled differently to provide a different perspective to each block, the project was approved in 1967 and construction of the towers commenced immediately. Cleveland Tower was completed in 1970 and Clydesdale Tower in 1971, upon their opening, they had 488 flats. Recent changes to housing legislation by the incoming Conservative government allowed the Council to offer many of the flats on a cost rent basis to those not on the housing waiting list. Although changes to the Councils letting policy subsequently ended cost rent lettings, Optima then embarked on an extensive refurbishment programme as part of a wider regeneration scheme in the Attwood Green area in Birmingham. The project at The Sentinels involved replacing windows, kitchens, lifts, refurbishing the communal areas and improving security. A new entrance was constructed as well as a feature, lighting scheme, which illuminates the building a blue light at night. In 2004, the Sentinels Residents Association submitted a petition to Birmingham City Council complaining about waste facilities and they also complained about a man, who had previously threatened suicide, being rehoused on a high floor of one of the towers. Beetham Tower, Birmingham List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Clydesdale Tower on Skyscrapernews Cleveland Tower on Skyscrapernews Optima Community Association

18.
Rotunda (Birmingham)
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The Rotunda is a cylindrical highrise building in Birmingham, England. The Grade II listed building is 81 metres tall and was completed in 1965 and it was refurbished between 2004 and 2008 by Urban Splash with Glenn Howells who turned it into a residential building with serviced apartments on 19th and 20th floors. The building was reopened on 13 May 2008. A part of the James A. Roberts design for the original Bull Ring Shopping Centre included a 12 storey circular office block and this was revised to 25 storeys, abandoning plans for a rooftop restaurant and a cinema. The design was approved and construction began on the 81 metre building in 1961 and it was constructed with aid of a tower crane located to the side of the reinforced concrete central core. Due to its proximity to a tunnel, the main load was built on to a twin ring of piled foundations directly beneath the circular structural core. The floors are supported by the core and perimeter columns, when opened, the podium had shops and its own work of art, The Rotunda Relief at Lloyds banking hall, a circular mural designed by John Poole. The building construction was unique at the time, possibly due to the lack of construction space, the supports for the hydraulic pumps used to jack up the building started to shift towards the New Street Station railway lines so the buildings planned height was never completed. Completed in 1965 as a block at a cost of £1 million during the post-war rebuilding of the Bull Ring. However, suggestions in the 1980s that it should be demolished when the Bull Ring was again redeveloped met with equal, if not greater, in 1974 a pub on the ground floor and basement of the building, was one of the sites of the Birmingham pub bombings. Since its construction and prior to the construction of the new Bullring, in the 1960s and 1970s these advertisements were for the property company MEPC plc, while in the 1980s and 1990s the Rotunda displayed signs for Coca-Cola. During construction of the new Bullring, advertisements on the top of the building advertised the new development, the building also previously had a digital clock showing the time from the top floors. In August 2000, it received Grade II listed building status, from 2004 to 2008, the Rotunda, a Grade II listed building, was refurbished and partially converted for residential use by developer Urban Splash and Glenn Howells Architects. The redevelopment created 232 luxury apartments, including six penthouse suites on the 20th floor, the whole of the 19th floor and one of the penthouses on the 20th floor is run as serviced apartments by the Manchester-based operator, Staying Cool. There are fourteen apartments on each floor, all apartments have been sold, with the final 92 being sold within three hours of their release. Two hi-tech LED illuminations were installed at the top of the building in 2007, both LED boards have been removed to make way for a light box which was approved by Birmingham City Council in late-2007. The façade consists of 72 floor-to-ceiling height glass panes, each placed at 5° to the neighbouring window, on 18 May 2006, strong winds dislodged a pane of glass causing it to fall to the ground resulting in the surrounding area being closed to the public. However, by June 2008, investors were already facing a significant financial loss, rents have been significantly below what was expected, and the value of the flats dropped an average of £25,000 from October 2005 to June 2008

19.
103 Colmore Row
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103 Colmore Row formerly known as National Westminster House is a building on Colmore Row, Birmingham, England. The original building was designed by John Madin and was completed in October 1975 as offices, after National Westminster Bank vacated the building it passed through several ownerships but failed to lease its offices. In 2008 a plan by then owners British Land to demolish the tower and this plan never progressed and the building is now owned by the developer Sterling Property Ventures who successfully applied to have the building demolished and a new tower constructed in 2015. Demolition began in July 2015 and was completed in January 2017, the original building was a 23-storey structure with entrances on Colmore Row and Newhall Street. Designed by John Madin, it is of the Brutalist style, although, the pre-cast concrete panels on the exterior, which were common on commercial buildings of the time, rather than in-situ concrete do make the building differ from classic Brutalism. Designs for the building were first publicised in 1964 and it was remarked that it had drawn inspiration from the University of Pittsburgh by Louis Kahn, the designs showed a two-storey banking hall with a rectangular tower with horizontal ribbon windows. It also showed a service tower facing on to Newhall Street and this design differed significantly to the one that was approved by Birmingham City Council. The scheme also included an office block to the west of the site that was separated from it by an L-shaped courtyard. This office block was reclad and increased to eight storeys in 1996-7 so that it reads as a separate building. The entire scheme was named the Colmore Centre, the first phase of the scheme, which consisted of the construction of the banking hall, was completed in 1969. Construction of the began in 1973 and was completed three years later at a total cost of £3.5 million. The building was constructed so that it was not purely occupied by the National Westminster Bank, however, the building proved difficult to let and was never fully occupied with the only major corporation to take office space in the tower was Eversheds. The building has been vacant since 2003, the banking hall itself has a coffered ceiling of plasterboard covered in gold leaf and Travertine marble floors and skirtings. The exterior is covered in abstract plaster murals and bronze matt ceramic tiles, the lift shaft and two ventilation towers are constructed using brick. The structure was constructed of precast concrete with concrete floor slabs. There are four plant floors at the top of the tower and 100 car park spaces in a basement car park that has been left disused upon the discovery of asbestos. The office block was accessed via a stainless steel surround doorway on Newhall Street, the entrance here appears to be of a later date to the rest of the building. The office block has a core at the centre of each floor, consisting of a large service duct, lavatories, four lift shafts

20.
The Cube (building)
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The Cube is a 25 storey mixed-use development in the centre of Birmingham, England. Designed by Ken Shuttleworth of MAKE Architects, it contains 135 flats,111,500 square feet of offices, shops, a hotel and it is the final phase of The Mailbox development. The site is enclosed by The Mailbox complex, Commercial Street, Washington Wharf apartment complex, as the final stage of The Mailbox development, Birmingham Development Company Ltd. decided to organise a design competition for a building on the site. The winning design was submitted by Birmingham-born architect Ken Shuttleworth of MAKE Architects, plans for The Cube were first submitted to Birmingham City Councils Planning Department on 31 August 2005 for outline planning permission. A six-week public consultation stage was implemented immediately, and the application received outline planning permission from the Planning Committee on 7 February 2006. Full planning permission was granted by the Planning Committee on 7 August 2006, the project was originally scheduled to be completed in 2008, but has been delayed. Construction company, Taylor Woodrow had won the project from Sir Robert McAlpine and Miller Construction, due to other contractors being deterred by the complexity of the design, BDC decided to establish their own subsidiary contractor, BuildAbility. This led Building magazine to dub the project Britains biggest DIY job, employees of Build Ability are being offered a 60% share of the profits of The Cube as an incentive to encourage recruitment. Preparation for construction commenced in 2007 with the clearance of all structures on site, a large diameter auger piling technique was used to install 226,900 mm diameter piles at 1,050 mm spacings and to depths of 24 m. BSL skipped three piles – after installing the first pile – to avoid concrete flowing into the next borehole, due to the presence of groundwater when the piles were bored, a Tremie pipe was used which displaced water to the surface as the bore hole was filled with concrete. Along the western boundary of the site, a further 54 minipiles were installed to a depth of 12 m to further support Washington Wharf. BSL then constructed 30 king post piles to provide the foundation for a ramp which was required for future building works. Each king post pile was formed in a 900 mm diameter pile and these piles ran in two parallel rows down the centre of the site from Commercial Street. With all the piling works complete, excavation commenced on site by local firm ODonnell. A total of 60,000 m3 of earth and sandstone was removed from the site, once this had been completed, BSL returned to construct 12 temporary anchors to hold back the retaining piles on the east side of the site. BSL completed the project at the end of 2007. BuildAbility then subcontracted work for the construction of the shell to ODonnell. ODonnell used a construction technique in partnership with PERI Ltd. to construct the cores, columns

21.
Five Ways Tower
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Five Ways Tower is a 23 storey commercial building on a 2. The building was completed in 1979, several hotels expressed interest in acquiring the building from its owners, since its solid concrete design could be converted into a business class hotel. The building is vacant due to the last tenants evacuating the building due to ill health amongst the workforce, the building has in excess of 100,000 sqft of existing net office space, six lifts, basement storage, and a double height floor at the top. The building has a carpark for approximately 200 cars allocated to the Tower, the buildings architect was Philip Bright of the Property Services Agency. Andy Foster described it as being similar to the work of James Stirling, list of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry Skyscrapernews entry

22.
Hyatt Regency Birmingham
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The Hyatt Regency Birmingham is a hotel on Broad Street in the city centre of Birmingham, England. Hyatt Regency Birmingham stands at a height of 75 metres 24 floors and has 319 guest rooms, the hotel has a blue glass exterior facade, and stands across the road from the International Convention Centre. The hotel Food & Beverage offering includes The Gentleman & Scholar Pub and Terrace, Aria Restaurant, the amala Spa & Club includes six treatments rooms and a dedicated nail bar. The leisure facilities of the also include a 16-metre swimming pool, sauna, steam room, Jacuzzi, whirlpool. Hyatt Regency Birmingham has 8 meeting rooms, the hotel was built, and is run by, Hyatt Regency Birmingham Ltd. This company is a partnership between the Hyatt Corporation, Trafalgar House, and Birmingham City Council. The hotel cost £37 million to build, with £1.5 million of that provided by the city, which also donated the building site. In April 2002, the company put the building up for sale. In November 2002, the hotel was sold to London Plaza Hotels for £27.5 million, Birmingham City Council made a £5 million profit on the sale, from its 17. 5% stake in the hotel, which it used to pay off debt. The hotel was constructed to have close ties to the International Convention Centre. This easy to secure link was one factor in attracting the 24th G8 summit to the city, the Hyatt Hotels Corporation bought the hotel out of administration in 2012 for £27 million. In 2014, they made a £6 million investment into the hotel included a new pub with a heated terrace which opens onto Broad Street - The Gentleman & Scholar Pub. In 2016, the hotel was brought by a Middle East investment group for £38.6 million, the hotel will keep its Hyatt Regency branding. The purchaser plans to spend approximately £2.7 million over the three years on improving the venue. Reflected glory in heart of the city, Its one of Birminghams landmark buildings and now its had a multi-million pound facelift

23.
Centre City Tower (Birmingham)
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Centre City Tower is a commercial building in the city centre of Birmingham, England, owned by Bruntwood. Several companies have offices in the building, including Ofwat and Virgin Trains, the buildings architects were Richard Seifert and Partners. The Centre City complex consists of two buildings, the Tower and the Podium, the Podium is a low-rise building that surrounds the Tower base, but there is no direct connection between the two. This arrangement means that the first floor of the Tower is at approximately seventh-floor level when compared with other buildings, when first constructed, the Podium contained at ground level a nightclub and a theatre. The theatre was a requirement of the City Council, who stipulated that a public amenity should be provided as a condition of granting planning permission, before building work commenced, the lost theatre was featured in an article in the UK trade journal New Civil Engineer. This may explain why the street at the back of the building is called Theatre Approach though the next door of the former Tatler Theatre may be a more convincing explanation. The Podium exterior was cleaned in mid-2006 using a power-washer, list of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry Skyscrapernews entry

24.
Snowhill
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Snowhill, as it is spelt by the developers, is a mixed-use development in the Colmore business district, known historically as Snow Hill, in Birmingham, England. The area, between Snow Hill Queensway and Birmingham Snow Hill station, is being redeveloped by the Ballymore Group, the £500 million phased scheme has been partly completed on the site of a former surface car park adjacent to the railway station and Midland Metro terminus. Phase Two, One Snowhill, a 260,000 sq ft,57 m tall building with 13 floors was completed in 2009. The building was acquired by Commerz Real in January 2010, tenants are KPMG, Barclays Banking Group and Solicitors DWF. Phase Three, Two Snowhill, at 75 m in height with 14 floors, was completed in May 2013, the building comprises 313,000 sq ft of office space and 8,000 sq ft of ground floor retail space. Two Snowhill was acquired by Hines in April 2011 The building was developed in conjunction with Ballymore and it is currently occupied by leading international law firm, Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co. HS2 have also become tenants to base Birmingham operations for the new high speed rail project from here, i2 are the final, current tenant to occupy Two Snowhill. Phase Four, Plans for a five star hotel and residential apartments are currently on hold due to financing issues with investors as a result of the economic downturn. No date has been set for work to recommence, in the medium term, the area will be landscaped. Located near to Colmore Row, the site was owned by the Colmore family who owned large areas of land to the north of the present city centre. The family began to establish road layouts and sell plots of land to builders in the 18th century, the site was one of these plots and it became the location of Oppenheims Glassworks. This is the earliest documented glassworks in Birmingham, the glassworks were built in 1757 by Mayer Oppenheim, a London merchant who moved to Birmingham in the same year and who patented red glass in 1755. The building ceased to be used as a glasshouse after 1780/81, the site was later cleared to make way for the new Birmingham Snow Hill station. In 1970, Snow Hill station was redeveloped and the became a surface car park. The four acre site runs along the edge of Birmingham Snow Hill station. To the north, the site is bounded by Great Charles Street Queensway and St. Chads Circus on the Inner Ring Road, to the south the site is bounded by Colmore Circus. It is located between the City Core and the Gun and Jewellery Quarters, the level of the site drops significantly from Colmore Circus to St. Chads Circus and also drops from Snow Hill Queensway to the railway station. There are a number of buildings in the immediate vicinity including 1 Snow Hill Plaza

25.
One Snow Hill Plaza
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One Snow Hill Plaza is a highrise hotel in Birmingham, England. It is 72 metres tall and was completed in 1973, in 2013 the building was renovated and became a 224-room hotel under the brand Holiday Inn Express. It receives the name Kennedy Tower from the dedicated to John F. Kennedy which was located in Snow Hill Circus until it was removed in mid-2006. It forms a prominent addition on the skyline when viewed from the north, in November 2007, Kenmore Property Ltd. announced plans to demolish the tower and replace it with a 118-metre office tower, by holding a public consultation for the proposal. The plans superseded an earlier proposal for a 12 storey office tower on the site 2 Snow Hill Plaza, the new tower was designed by Hamiltons Architects and provides 54,000 m2 of office space and 4,000 m2 of retail space. This would make it the largest office tower outside London, construction was expected to start in 2009 and to be completed in 2011. However, in November 2009, Kenmore Property Group were placed into administration, rob Caven and Martin Ellis of Grant Thornton UK LLP were appointed joint administrators of 21 of Kenmores companies, and joint receivers of two others. The Snow Hill Plaza site was put on the market by the administrators in March 2010

26.
Quayside Tower
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Quayside Tower is a modern commercial building in Birmingham, England. It is situated on Broad Street, one of Birminghams busiest streets and it forms a prominent part of the Broad Street skyline which consists of many other highrise buildings. Originally built in 1965 to a design by John Madin, it was refurbished in 2003 to a design by Richard Johnson & Associates to give it a fashionable appearance. Ashford Construction stripped all sixteen floors above the podium and added a new curtain walling from the top downwards and this produced a new roof feature which was designed by Watts & Partners. A new reception area was constructed and the 240 space car park was refurbished and it was developed by Kenmore Group. The tower has an area of 11,148 square metres with 8,918.4 square metres available for let once refurbishment was completed. List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry Skyscrapernews entry

27.
Colmore Gate
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Colmore Gate is an office and retail building in Birmingham, England. An example of early 1990s architecture by the Seymour Harris Partnership, the shaft is on the outside of the building. The design blends a traditional look with modern materials and style and it is situated in the heart of the business district of Birmingham. The building is home to large companies. The building sits on the footprint of the old Greys department store. The building was constructed after the developers bought the patch of land off another developing company whilst they were constructing a building there, the structure of a building was on the site and it was taken down before construction of Colmore Gate began. List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry Skyscrapernews entry

28.
The McLaren Building
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McLaren is a 69-metre,21 storey tall office building in Birmingham, England. Designed by Philip Bonham Associates and built in 1972, it is a thin brown office building, originally it housed part of the staff training department of Midland Bank, now HSBC. The building is owned by property company Bruntwood who purchased it from the Birmingham Alliance in 2008 and it is situated on the edge of two redevelopment sites to the south and east. Masshouse to the east and Martineau Galleries to the south are due to be redeveloped at some time in the future, the entrance is on Priory Queensway, and near the junction with Moor Street Queensway. During 2009 the building was renovated with its exterior glazing given a fresh look, as at December 2012 the building is 65% occupied

29.
Metropolitan House
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Metropolitan House, also known as 1 Hagley Road, is a commercial building that is being developed into apartments in Birmingham, England. It is situated on the A456 Hagley Road at Five Ways and it was designed by John Madin. The building hosts several radio transmitting antennas on its roof and these include, Capital Birmingham -102.2 MHz FM CE Digital - Block 11C,220. Seven Capital acquired 1 Hagley Road in August 2013 and optimised the planning consent to 271 flats with no alterations to the exterior of the building, one, two and three bedroom apartments will be marketed at between £130,000 and £250,000. List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry Skyscrapernews entry Transmission Gallery entry

30.
Edgbaston House
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Edgbaston House is a highrise commercial building in on Duchess Place, Birmingham. It was built by Laing Development Co Ltd. and the engineers were Ove Arup. It was the result of work by Calthorpe Estates to attract businesses to the Hagley Road and it is part of the Duchess Place estate which consists of office blocks totalling 200,000 sq ft. They are owned by the Kenmore Group, who acquired the estate from Chelsfield, tenants of the building include the Islamic Bank of Britain and various medical groups. List of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Emporis entry

31.
The Colmore Building
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The Colmore Building, formerly known as Colmore Plaza, is a 14-storey office building in the Colmore Business District area of Birmingham City Centre. The Colmore Building is a Grade A office building spread over 14 storeys and it can accommodate lettings of up to 104,000 sq ft across 23,000 sq ft floor plates and has a BREEAM environmental and sustainability rating of Excellent. There are around 500 companies located in the Colmore Business District, employing up to 35,000 people, AshbyCapital secured an £80m loan with AgFe to fund the deal. AshbyCapitals other investments include 200 Aldersgate, a 434,005 sq ft building in the City of London. In January 2016, AshbyCapital announced a £3. 5m enhancement programme and relaunched the building under the new name, the Colmore Building website AshbyCapital website Colmore Business District website

32.
Jurys Inn Birmingham
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The Jurys Inn is a hotel building on Broad Street, Birmingham, England. Built using concrete cladding and steel joists, this building was part of the plan to redevelop Birmingham in the 1960s, construction commenced in 1974 and was completed the following year to a design by Ian Fraser of John Roberts & Partners. It is one of the tallest buildings on Broad Street and forms a prominent part of the city skyline when viewed from the south and it is a rare example of Brutalist architecture in Birmingham, with other similar examples being Birmingham Central Library and New Street Station Signal Box. The hotel itself is a 3 star branch with 445 rooms, on the ground floor is a pub and a restaurant. The hotel opened on February 1,1999 after a £12 million refurbishment from a building into a hotel. It was bought by the Jurys Inns hotel chain in 2001 for £42 million, list of tallest buildings and structures in Birmingham Bartlam, Norman, Carl Chinn

33.
Baskerville House
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Baskerville House, previously called the Civic Centre, is a former civic building in Centenary Square, Birmingham, England. The site was occupied by the home of John Baskerville. He was buried nearby in the area which was known as Easy Hill, when the construction of a canal through the area was proposed, Baskervilles body was exhumed and found to be in good condition. It was placed on display to the public before being buried at Christ Church, the site adjacent to the canal, on the site of Baskerville House, was purchased by the Birmingham Aluminium Company who constructed Baskerville Basin. Gibsons Basin was also constructed nearby to serve a rolling mill, the city council bought the land in 1919 for a new Civic Centre. Baskerville Basin was filled in but Gibsons Basin remained, however, in 1936, Winfields Ltd decided to relocate to Icknield Port after taking over Vivians Rolling Mills. They abandoned the remainder of Gibsons Basin to Birmingham City Council who filled it in for their Civic Centre plans, in 1926, the city council organised an open competition for the new layout of the Civic Centre, however, many of the designs were deemed Too Ambitious. As a result, the city engineer was asked to work with the architects of the Hall of Memory, S. N. Cooke, cecil Howitt of Nottingham was asked to design the first building, which was to become Baskerville House. This was approved in 1936 and construction began in 1938, world War II halted construction of Baskerville House, and after the war the use of Roman Imperial imagery on public buildings went out of fashion. A1941 model of the proposed Civic Centre, designed by William Haywood, the building is decorated with the Coat of arms of Birmingham. Formerly offices for parts of Birmingham City Council, including the Planning Department and Economic Development Department, remained vacant for several years after the City Council vacated the property in the spring of 1998. The initial refurbishment plan proposed conversion to a Radisson Edwardian Hotel, a feasibility study into whether it was possible to locate the Central Library was carried out, and the building was deemed to not be suitable as it would not be strong enough to hold all the books. The building was sold to Targetfollow who proposed to convert into offices. This was approved and it was gutted and extended two floors upwards to provide office space on seven floors, and a health club in the basement. Work started in August 2003 and was completed in early 2007 at an estimated cost of £30 million, there is 195,108 sq ft of office space within the building with floorplates of 27,000 sq ft. The two new floors are of steel and glass, a lighting scheme was added to the exterior by Hoare Lea Lighting of the Hoare Lee group who were also commissioned for other aspects of the build. The building won the Commercial Development of the Year award at the Midlands Property Week awards in July 2007, the building also won the Midlands and East Anglia regional award in the Refurbished/Recycled Workplace category at the British Council for Offices awards in October 2007. A statue of King Edward VII was moved to a plinth near the South-West corner of the building in November 2010, a sculpture of the Baskerville typeface, Industry and Genius, in honour of John Baskerville stands outside the main entrance to Baskerville House in Centenary Square

34.
Steelhouse Lane police station
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Steelhouse Lane police station is a police station in central Birmingham, England. It was built for the Birmingham City Police and opened in 1933 as their Central Police Station and it remains in use by their successor, the West Midlands Police, but is proposed for closure and sale. The carvings over the entrances, including the coat of arms of Birmingham, are by the local sculptor William Bloye, the station sits on a plot of land at the rear of the former Victoria Law Courts, which was originally acquired for the extension of the court building. The station sits in Birmingham City Councils Steelhouse Lane conservation area, a tunnel links the cell block to the courts. The station is now a divisional headquarters for the West Midlands Police, the City of Birmingham Orchestra, held its first rehearsal in the band room at the old station, at 9. 30am on 4 September 1920. For around sixty years, until closed in 2005, the station housed a private bar, the police station closed for the final time on Sunday 15 January 2017

35.
Chamberlain Clock
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The Chamberlain Clock is an Edwardian, cast-iron, clock tower in the Jewellery Quarter of Birmingham, England. It was erected in 1903 to mark Joseph Chamberlains tour of South Africa between 26 December 1902 and 25 February 1903, after the end of the Second Boer War, the clock was unveiled during Chamberlains lifetime, in January 1904 by Mary Crowninshield Endicott, Joseph Chamberlains third wife. Standing at the junction of Vyse and Frederick Streets with Warstone Lane, it is now a local landmark, Chamberlain had been a resident on Frederick Street and had also helped jewellers through his campaign work to abolish Plate Duties - a tax affecting jewellery tradesmen of the time. The timepiece was originally powered by a winding handle. It was later adapted to electricity but fell into disrepair and lost its chime and it was fully restored in 1989

36.
Chamberlain Memorial
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An inauguration ceremony was held on 20 October 1880, when Chamberlain himself was present. For the creation of the monument, £3,000 of public funds were raised and it is 65 feet tall and in neo-gothic style, reminiscent of the Albert Memorial. It bears a 50 centimetres portrait medallion of Chamberlain by Thomas Woolner on the south side, the carvings of the capitals and the crocketted spire were done by Samuel Barfield of Leicester, John Henry Chamberlains favourite sculptor. Salviati Burke and Co. of Venice were commissioned to do the mosaics after their success with the Birmingham Council House, and during whose Mayoralty many great public works were notably advanced. And mainly by whose ability & devotion the Gas & Water Undertakings were acquired for the town to the great, like the Chamberlain Memorial, the Chamberlain Clock in the centre of the Jewellery Quarter was also erected during Chamberlains lifetime. In the late 1960s, the pools around the fountain were removed, the Portland stone spire underwent a major clean in 1994. Many sculptors and architects took to the memorial with dissatisfaction, John Roddis, a local sculptor, described it as an architectural scarecrow and a hash of ornamental details. Nikolaus Pevsner also commented on the memorial in 1966 as a combination of shapes. Historic England, Joseph Chamberlain Memorial, National Heritage List for England, retrieved 28 October 2016

37.
Council House, Birmingham
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Birmingham City Council House in Birmingham, England, is the home of Birmingham City Council, and thus the seat of local government for the city. The first-floors exterior balcony is used by visiting dignitaries and victorious sports teams and it is located in Victoria Square in the city centre and is a Grade II* listed building. The Council House has its own postcode, B1 1BB, the side of the building, which faces Chamberlain Square, is the entrance and façade of the Museum and Art Gallery which is partly housed within the same building. The open space which is now Victoria Square was once occupied by Christ Church, the land on which the Council House and adjacent Museum and Art Gallery are located was purchased in 1853. This land consisted of Ann Street which was home to such as the Cabinet of Curiosities. The building had a tower topped with a flagpole. The top was castellated and the walls were whitewashed and adorned in advertisements, the last tenants of the building were the Suffield family, ancestors of J. R. R. Tolkien. The land was earmarked for development, however constant financial difficulties put all development on hold until 1871 when the council agreed to build offices on the site. A design competition was established and the council received 29 entries, however a decision was delayed by further financial difficulties. The council was split over the Gothic entry by Martin & Chamberlain. Thomasons design was chosen however amendments to the art gallery entrance, the clock and tower are known locally as, Big Brum. Construction commenced on the building in 1874 when the first stone was laid by the then mayor Joseph Chamberlain, the building was completed in 1879 and cost £163,000. A debate was held to decide upon the name of the building with the options being The Municipal Hall, the Council House was extended almost immediately, 1881–85. The architect was again Yeoville Thomason and this was a combined Art Gallery and the home of the corporations Gas Department whose budget subsidised the building as legislation limited the expenditure of ratepayers taxes on the arts. Above the main entrance, which faces Victoria Square, is a mosaic by Salviati Burke, above that, the pediment shows Britannia receiving the manufacturers of Birmingham. The carved decoration on the entablature includes green men, on 9 August 1902, The Council House, along with the Town Hall, was illuminated in celebration of the coronation of King Edward VII. The Council House was extended a second time 1911-1919 by the building of a new block to the north and connected to it by an intricately designed archway. The archway or bridge resembles slightly The Bridge of Sighs in Venice. This contains much of the Museum and Art Gallery and, on its ground floor, many memorials are housed within the Council House

38.
Edgbaston Waterworks
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Edgbaston Waterworks lies to the east of Edgbaston Reservoir, two miles west of the centre of Birmingham, England. The buildings were designed by John Henry Chamberlain and William Martin around 1870, the engine house, boiler house, and chimney are Grade II listed buildings. The site is operated by Severn Trent Water, despite the close proximity to Edgbaston Reservoir there is no current or historical connection of the water. This waterworks manages domestic water supply whereas the reservoir was built to feed the canal system

39.
Tyseley Energy from Waste Plant
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Tyseley Energy Recovery Facility is a waste incineration plant in Birmingham, UK. It was built in 1996 by Veolia to a design by Faulks Perry Culley & Rech, the plant has become a notable building in Birmingham with a lighting scheme that illuminates the plant during the hours of darkness. It was built to comply with the European emissions standards that came into force in 1996, Veolia benefits from Levy Exemption Certificates for the element of energy which is produced from renewable sources. This provides income to the City Council, the plant was opposed by Birmingham Friends of the Earth for contributing to climate change, causing air pollution and reducing recycling rates in the city. The ERF operates 24 hours a day for 365 days a year and it takes around 350,000 tonnes of waste produced by the city annually and burns it along with natural gas to produce electricity, of which 25MW is fed into the National Grid. It is a plant with each boiler designed to process 23.5 tonnes of rubbish per hour. It has a turbo-generator which exports 25MW to the National Grid, the ERF also recovers several thousand tonnes a year of ferrous metals for recycling from the process

40.
Hall of Memory, Birmingham
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The scheme was abandoned after the arrival of World War II with only half of the planned Baskerville House having been built. Construction had cost £60,000 and was funded through public donations, the four statues around the exterior are by local artist Albert Toft. They represent the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the interior features three carved bas-relief plaques by William Bloye representing three tableaux, Call, Front Line, Return. The hall was upgraded on 27 October 2014 to a Grade I listed building from its previous Grade II. During the Birmingham Blitz, on the night of 11 December 1940, all but the tower and classical west portico of St. Thomas Church. The First World War Memorial colonnade, which had been alongside the Hall of Memory in 1925, was relocated there when Centenary Square was laid out 1989. Pevsner Architectural Guides - Birmingham, Andy Foster,2005, ISBN 0-300-10731-5 Public Sculpture of Birmingham including Sutton Coldfield, George T

41.
Library of Birmingham
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The Library of Birmingham is a public library in Birmingham, England. It is situated on the west side of the city centre at Centenary Square, beside the Birmingham Rep, upon opening on 3 September 2013, it replaced Birmingham Central Library. The library, which is estimated to have cost £188.8 million, is viewed by the Birmingham City Council as a project for the citys redevelopment. It has been described as the largest public library in the United Kingdom, the largest public space in Europe. 2,414,860 million visitors came to the library in 2014 making it the 10th most popular attraction in the UK. Birmingham City Council looked into relocating the library for many years, the original plan was to build a new library in the emerging Eastside district, which had been opened up to the city centre following the demolition of Masshouse Circus. A library was designed by Richard Rogers on a site in the area, however, for financial reasons and reservations about the location this plan was shelved. In August 2006, the Council confirmed the area between the Rep Theatre and Baskerville House as the site for the library. Capita Symonds had been appointed as Project Managers for the Library of Birmingham, the councils intention was to create a world class landmark civic building in Centenary Square. Not long after this, the idea was scrapped and the archives. After an international competition, run by the Royal Institute of British Architects. They were chosen from a list of over 100 architects, the architects chosen were, Foreign Office Architects, Foster and Partners, Hopkins Architects, Mecanoo, OMA, Schmidt hammer lassen and Wilkinson Eyre. In early August 2008, Mecanoo and multi-discipline engineers, Buro Happold, were announced as the winner of the design competition, more detailed plans for the library were revealed by the council in conjunction with the architects at a launch event held on 2 April 2009. The previous Central Library failed for the time to gain status as a listed building. Work was scheduled to begin on demolishing the old library early in 2015 to make way for the redevelopment of Paradise Circus, reaction to the planned library was generally positive. Philip Pullman said The new Library of Birmingham sounds as if it will be lovely, writers will love it, and so will readers. Architect of the Birmingham Central Library, John Madin, criticised the building as not fit for purpose in 2011, Madin said They are spending all this money on a new library which is no better than the existing one. Eighty per cent of it not have natural light and does not meet the standards of the existing building

42.
Public Library and Baths, Balsall Heath
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The Public Library and Baths on Moseley Road, Balsall Heath, form one of many pairings of baths and libraries in Birmingham, England. The library was opened in 1895, with the following in 1907. Made of red brick and terracotta in Edwardian style, the structure is one of three swimming pools in the country listed at Grade II* status. The buildings are managed by Birmingham City Council, however. A bill was passed and Balsall Heath was annexed into Birmingham on 1 October 1891, the City of Birmingham Baths Department was then instructed to find an appropriate site for the construction of public baths in the area. Working in conjunction with the Free Libraries Committee the Baths Department soon located a site on Moseley Road close to the junction with Edward Road, the Free Library opened in 1895 and has a clock tower. It was designed by Jethro A. Cossins and F. B, the baths were added immediately to the south and were opened on 30 October 1907, much later than planned owing to severe delays experienced in boring a well on the premises. They were designed by William Hale and Son of 83, Colmore Row, as was common practice at the time, there were separate entrances for first-class males, second-class males, and women. Initially, only the slipper bath departments were opened, with the coming into operation on 1 March 1908. On 21 November 1908, the pool was floored over. It was one of public baths to begin these activities in the winter months as there was little demand for the pools during this time of year. The baths were used as a hospital in the early years of World War II. An additional entrance was created to facilitate this purpose, which was used as a fire exit from Pool 2. By the end of 2010 a steel beam used to support the wall and roof above it had become severely corroded, today, the library remains a functioning branch of Birmingham Library Services. The baths, run by Birmingham City Council, reopened following extensive work during 2005. They stand opposite the College of Art and were listed at Grade II as an entity in 1982, upgraded to Grade II* status in 2004 by the Department for Culture, Media. In 2006 a Friends of Moseley Road Baths group was formed to campaign for the future of the building as a fully functioning swimming facility. In 2010 the Friends group was awarded a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £48,000 to document the history and to interview former

43.
Birmingham Baths Committee
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They constructed bathing facilities within Birmingham through funding by the council. Birmingham had been provided with swimming baths for some time before the establishment of the Birmingham Baths Committee and these baths were private and members were often only the wealthy who were able to pay for the service. The baths received water from natural resources, often springs, which were plentiful throughout the town, Digbeth was a significant site for spring water and had provided water for the area for drinking and washing purposes as well as contributing to the River Rea. However, Digbeth and Deritend became increasingly industrialised and the spring was built over as a result. In William Wests Topography of Warwickshire, there were ten private baths. Whilst the dimensions of the baths were small, they provided a range of services and had different aims, a major proprietor of bath houses in Birmingham was a Mr. Monro who had had premises in Lady Well and Snow Hill. Private baths were advertised as having healing qualities and being able to cure people of diabetes, gout and all skin diseases, amongst others. On 19 November 1844, it was decided that the class members of society should have the opportunity to access baths. On that day, a committee was formed and a fund was opened, within a week, £4,000 had been donated to the fund. On 22 April and 23 April 1845, two lectures were delivered in the town hall urging the provision of public baths in Birmingham and other towns and it was recorded that the attendance of the lectures was low, however, those in attendance were highly respectable. A second public meeting was held by the committee on 15 June 1845, on 24 June 1845, the committee purchased the land for £6,102, which was taken from the funds they had accumulated. After a period of campaigning by many committees, the Public Baths, the Act empowered local authorities to incur expenditure in constructing public swimming baths out of its own funds. Following the Act of Parliament, the council called a meeting on 7 October 1846. It was at this meeting that decided to adopt the act. On 2 October 1848, the council gave their sanction for the construction of the first public baths, the committee constructed many public baths and never acquired private baths. Also, Birmingham was undergoing a period of change in that it absorbed many urban districts which were not within the boundaries before, as a result of this, the committee often gained the ownership of bathing facilities owned by the district councils before. Kent Street Baths were the first baths opened by the committee, construction began on 29 October 1849, with the laying of the first foundation stone. The baths were opened on 12 May 1851, however, the baths were not completed until 1852, the building was designed by D. R. Hill

44.
Birmingham Municipal Bank
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The Birmingham Municipal Bank was a savings bank in the city of Birmingham, England. It was created as the Birmingham Corporation Savings Bank by a 1916 Act of Parliament and it was the only municipal bank in the country. Suggested by local politician Neville Chamberlain in 1915, the bank was originally for savings from earnings, earning interest at 3. 5% and it opened on 29 September 1916 after resistance from the banks and the Treasury. It had achieved 30,000 new investors by the end of 1917 and was made permanent in 1919 and its Golden Jubilee was celebrated in 1969 by a Birmingham postal slogan, Municipal Bank Golden Jubilee 1919-1969. The name changed to Birmingham Municipal Bank by a 1919 Act which allowed the creation of branch banks, by 1950 there were 66 branches. It ceased to be a department of the city council in 1976, becoming a Trustee Savings Bank, ultimately the TSBs were privatised, and in 1995 became part of Lloyds TSB. In 1935, Birmingham Municipal Bank caused controversy in Birmingham and Sutton Coldfield and their plans created an outcry from people from the town, who feared that Birmingham was attempting the annexation of Sutton Coldfield. The protest resulted in a debate in the citys council chamber as to whether a written guarantee should be submitted to Sutton Coldfield outlining that they were not annexing the town. A spokesperson for Birmingham later said that they had no plans of annexing the town, subsequently, following the Local Government Act 1972, Sutton Coldfield was merged into the city of Birmingham in 1974. A History of Birmingham, Chris Upton,1993, ISBN 0-85033-870-0 A History of the County of Warwick, Volume 7 – The City of Birmingham, stephens, University of London Institute of Historical Research, Oxford University Press,1964 Civic Enterprise. Prince George opens £85,000 Headquarters of Birminghams Municipal Bank

45.
Birmingham Town Hall
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Birmingham Town Hall is a Grade I listed concert hall and venue for popular assemblies opened in 1834 and situated in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. The design was based on the proportions of the Temple of Castor, perfect and aloof on a tall, rusticated podium, it marked an entirely new concept in English architecture. The hall underwent a renovation between 2002 and 2008. Two sites were considered by the Birmingham Street Commissioners for the construction of a hall in the city, Bennetts Hill. Joseph Hansom, of Hansom cab fame, and Edward Welch were chosen as the architects, Hill of London was hired to build the 6,000 pipe organ for £6,000. Construction began on 27 April 1832 with a completion date of 1833. However, Hansom went bankrupt during construction, having tendered too low, the contractors were also losing money. Three guarantors donated money for the building, W. P. Lloyd, John Welch, with the injection of this money, the building was successfully opened for the delayed Music Festival on 7 October 1834, despite the building still being unfinished. During construction, on 26 January 1833, two workers were killed when a 70-foot crane constructed to install the roof trusses broke and the pulley block failed, John Heap died instantly and Win. Badger died a few days later from his injuries and they were buried in St Philips churchyard and a memorial, consisting of a pillar base made by one of the workmen for the Town Hall, was dedicated to them. Architect Charles Edge was commissioned in 1835 to repair weaknesses to the design of the building and he was also commissioned for the extension of the building in 1837 and again in 1850. Charles Dickens gave public readings here to raise money for the Birmingham and Midland Institute, sir Arthur Sullivans Overture di Ballo was also premièred here in August 1870, as part of the Triennial Musical Festival which commissioned new works for every season. The hall was the venue for the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra from 1918 until 1991 when they moved to Symphony Hall. In November 1880, the Hall was filled to capacity for a Birmingham public protest meeting in support of Revd, richard Enraght, Vicar of Holy Trinity, Bordesley, who was imprisoned in Warwick Prison under the Disraeli Governments Public Worship Regulation Act. Popular music has featured, and in the 1960s and 1970s, headline acts such as Buddy Holly, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath. On 9 August 1902, the hall, along with the council house, was illuminated in celebration of the coronation of King Edward VII. It was illuminated again on 22 June 1911 for the coronation of King George V, in 1901, it was the scene of rioting on the occasion of a visit by David Lloyd George. It featured prominently in the 1967 Peter Watkins film Privilege and doubled for the Royal Albert Hall in 1996s Brassed Off, the pediment also had images of Britannia, supported by mermaids, which were sculpted by William Bloye

46.
Sutton Coldfield Town Hall
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Sutton Coldfield Town Hall is a former hotel and council building in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England. The building is Grade A locally listed, the town halls position on the edge of a steep slope means that it has views over large areas of south Sutton Coldfield whilst the northern area remains at the same or similar gradient. A moot hall was built in Sutton Coldfield during the time of John Vesey, Bishop of Exeter and it was demolished following structural instability caused by the collapse of an upper floor due to the weight of crowds attending the funeral of Thomas Dawney in 1671. There were no fatalities or serious injuries, a second moot hall was constructed on the same site soon after demolition. It remained in use up until 1854 when it too became structurally unsafe resulting in its demolition, the decision was taken for the workhouse and gaol to be renovated and turned into municipal offices. This was rebuilt in 1859 to better suit its purpose, the buildings were converted into a masonic hall upon the opening of the new town hall. The almshouses beneath the building were removed in 1924 and the moved to newly constructed almshouses in Walmley. The building consists of an 1865 structure and an 1906 extension, in 1865 the Royal Hotel was built on a small eminence above the newly opened railway station to serve the needs of visitors to the town. Throughout its short life, the hotel was beset with financial difficulties and closed in 1895. A Lt. Col Wilkinson purchased the hotel in 1896 and converted it for use as a sanatorium, the tower, which rises from one of the main entrances, has a clock face on all four sides. When first opened, the tower also served as a hose tower. The opening event was a concert by the Sutton Coldfield Choral Society. The following night, a dramatic performance of The Duke of Killicrankie was given by A. C. All operations were moved from the town hall on Mill Street to the new building. The area to the front of the hall, King Edwards Square, became the main public assembly area. In 1919, the hall was used as a theatre for discharged and demobilized men who had fought in World War I. It remained as such up until 1934 having hosted productions such as The School for Scandal, A Midsummer Nights Dream, the Fire Station remained in use until it was replaced by a new building on Lichfield Road in 1963, later the old premises became the Bedford Suite. When Sutton Coldfield was absorbed into Birmingham in 1974, the Town Hall became redundant and was required to change its usage, the Sutton Coldfield coat of arms, which was absorbed into the Birmingham Coat of Arms, is still depicted above the entrance

47.
Birmingham Moor Street railway station
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Birmingham Moor Street is one of three main railway stations in the city centre of Birmingham, England, along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Snow Hill. In 2002, the station was restored and expanded in 1930s style and combined with the 1987 station. It is now the second busiest railway station in Birmingham, at the turn of the 20th Century, suburban rail traffic into Birmingham was growing rapidly. The Great Western Railway greatly expanded their facilities in the city at time to cope with the demands. Snow Hill station, their station in Birmingham, was extensively rebuilt. In order to solve the capacity problem therefore, Moor Street station was built at the end of the tunnel to take terminating local trains from the south. It was a terminus for trains from Leamington Spa. It was opened with temporary buildings in July 1909, the permanent buildings were completed in 1914, the through tracks to Snow Hill running alongside however were not provided with platforms. The traversers were removed from service in 1967, when all services to the station switched to diesel multiple unit operation, trains only used Moor Street during Mondays to Saturdays, on Sundays, Snow Hill station was quiet enough to allow the train to terminate there instead. In 1948, upon nationalisation, Moor Street came under the control of the Western Region of British Railways, transferring to the London Midland Region, in 1963. Moor Street itself came under threat of closure in 1969, however five local authorities objected and took the case to the High Court, which sided with the local authorities, preventing closure. From 1967 until the mid-1970s, Moor Street was at its lowest ebb, in the 1970s, local services from the station came under the control of the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive under whose auspices service frequencies were improved. From 1975, a regular interval half hourly service was introduced between Moor Street and Dorridge and Shirley, Moor Street was originally provided with a large goods station situated adjacent to the passenger station, which opened in 1914. This took many goods trains which would otherwise have passed through Snow Hill tunnel, because it was built in a confined space on a steep gradient, the goods station was built on two levels, with one high level, and two low level sheds. Three wagon lifts were provided to transfer wagons to and from the low level sheds, the low level sheds were equipped with electric traversers to move wagons between the lifts and sidings where they would be loaded and unloaded. A major source of traffic at the station was fresh fruit and vegetables, which would arrive at the station in the mornings. The goods station was closed on 6 November 1972. The site of the goods station is now partly occupied by the Selfridges Building

48.
Birmingham New Street railway station
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Birmingham New Street is the largest and busiest of the three main railway stations in the city centre of Birmingham, England. It is a hub of the British railway system. The station is named after New Street, which runs parallel to the station, historically the main entrance to the station was on Stephenson Street, just off New Street. Today the station has entrances on Stephenson Street, Smallbrook Queensway, Hill Street, New Street is the seventh busiest railway station in the UK and the busiest outside London, with 39 million passenger entries and exits between April 2015 and March 2016. It is also the busiest interchange station outside London, with over 5.8 million passengers changing trains at the station annually, the original New Street station opened in 1854. At the time of its construction, the station had the largest single-span arched roof in the world, In the 1960s, the station was completely rebuilt. An enclosed station, with buildings over most of its span and passenger numbers more than twice those it was designed for, a £550m redevelopment of the station named Gateway Plus opened in September 2015. It includes a new concourse, a new facade. Around 80% of train services to Birmingham go through New Street, the other major city-centre stations in Birmingham are Birmingham Moor Street and Birmingham Snow Hill. On the outskirts, closer to Solihull, is Birmingham International, which serves Birmingham Airport and the National Exhibition Centre. Since 30 May 2016, New Street has been served by the Midland Metro tram line, the Grand Central New Street Station tram stop is located outside the stations main entrance on Stephenson Street. New Street station was built by the London and North Western Railway between 1846 and 1854, until 1885 the LNWR shared the station with the Midland Railway, whose trains also used the station. However, in 1885 the Midland Railway opened its own alongside the original station for the exclusive use of its trains. The two companies stations were separated by a roadway, Queens Drive. Traffic grew steadily, and by 1900 New Street had an average of 40 trains an hour departing and arriving, rising to 53 trains in the peak hours. The Countess of Huntingdons Connexion chapel, on the corner of Peck Lane and Dudley Street, on the formal opening day, the LNWRs Curzon Street railway station was closed to regular passenger services, and trains from the London direction started using New Street. The station was constructed by Messrs, fox, Henderson & Co. and designed by Edward Alfred Cowper of that firm, who had previously worked on the design of The Crystal Palace. When completed, it had the largest arched single-span iron and glass roof in the world, spanning a width of 212 feet and it held this title for 14 years until St Pancras station opened in 1868

49.
Birmingham Snow Hill railway station
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Birmingham Snow Hill is a railway station and tram stop in the centre of Birmingham, England. It is one of the three main stations in Birmingham along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Moor Street. The electrification of the line from London to New Street in the 1960s saw New Street favoured over Snow Hill. This led to the eventual closure in 1972, and demolition five years later. After fifteen years of closure a new Snow Hill station, the present incarnation, was built, the only long distance service into Snow Hill is to London Marylebone operated by Chiltern Railways, via the Chiltern Main Line. Snow Hill is also served by the Midland Metro light rail line from Wolverhampton, the present Snow Hill station has three platforms for National Rail trains. When it was reopened in 1987 it had four. The original tram terminus closed in November 2015, in order for the extension of the Midland Metro through Birmingham city centre to be connected and this includes a dedicated embankment for trams alongside the station, and will also include a new through stop serving Snow Hill. This will eventually allow the fourth platform to be returned to main-line use, the site of the station was formerly occupied by Oppenheims Glassworks. The station was opened in 1852 on the Great Western Railway main line from London Paddington to Wolverhampton Low Level, originally called Birmingham Station, its name was changed to Great Charles Street station, and then Livery Street Station. It was finally renamed Snow Hill in 1858, and the Great Western Hotel was added in 1863 and it was never intended to be the main station, but political gaming between the railway companies prevented the railway reaching its original intended terminus at Curzon Street. The original station was a temporary wooden structure, consisting of a large wooden shed covering the platforms. In 1871 it was rebuilt, and replaced with a permanent structure, the 1871 station had two through platforms, and bay platforms at the Wolverhampton end, covered by an arched roof. Access to the station was from Livery Street from the side, trains from the south arrived through Snow Hill Tunnel, built by the cut-and-cover method, and in a cutting from Temple Row to Snow Hill. The cutting was roofed over in 1872 and the Great Western Arcade built on top, Snow Hill station was rebuilt again on a much larger scale between 1906 and 1912. The new station building was intended to compete with New Street, the rebuilt station contained lavish facilities, such as a large booking hall with an arched glass roof, and lavish waiting rooms with oak bars. The main platform area was covered by a glass and steel overall roof. It consisted of two large Island platforms, containing four through platforms, and four bay platforms for terminating trains at the northern end